Dec 1, 2010

Blog Party with Prizes and Fun!

The Lovecats are beside ourselves with excitement! We’re welcoming three new cats to the pack today – and *you* get the presents. Paws up in the air for Natalie Anderson, Soraya Lane and Robyn Grady!

Natalie Anderson is a USA Today bestselling author for Sexy Sensation / Riva. Soraya Lane is a brand new author for Cherish / Sweet, whose first book will be out next year.Robyn Grady writes bestsellers for *both* Sexy Sensation / Riva and Desire.

So, to get to know them a little better, I asked the probing questions:
Favourite animal?

Natalie: Tiger – I love my cats wild and big and incredibly beautiful! They’re such a majestic creature. Close second would be the elephant. Just as majestic but in a very different way.

Soraya: Dogs, followed very closely by horses! I have two dogs and four horses, so I love them all :)

Natalie: I think it has to be the phoenix. I love the idea of something rising out of nothing – when you think all hope is lost, something beautiful can emerge from the ashes...

Soraya: Unicorn!

Robyn: A teenager who does as she's told! No? Perhaps the Centaur. I was a big Narnia fan when I was little. Still am. Bring back Prince Caspian, I say!

Soraya Lane

First category book you read?

Natalie: I have a great collection of classics from my Grandmother. Several by Rosalind Brett – and a couple of wonderful Anne Weale’s – The Sea Waif is an all-time fave.

Soraya: One called Changing Spaces, or something like that, and it was a SuperRomance set in Alaska. It made me fall in love with category, but I've since lost the book and cannot recall the author’s name!

Robyn: Can't remember the first one. But I do remember loving Lynsey Stevens: His Cousin's Wife His strong tanned body loomed over her, shutting out the shaft of moonlight that had been dancing between the rustling leaves above them, the light salty breeze playing along their naked bodies... Yes. I still have it =)

Last great category book you read?

Natalie: All the category books I read are good! That’s what’s great about category – they’re gorgeous treats. I just got copies of an anthology through the post and simply gobbled up the Nina Harrington and Robyn Grady stories in it!!!

Soraya: Donna Alward's Her Lone Cowboy.

Robyn: Maxine Sullivan's Taming her Billionaire Boss. Yum!

Something we wouldn’t know about you?

Natalie: Hmmm, I really don’t have that many secrets – pretty much what you see is what you get! No amazing unexpected skills like being an origami instructor or anything... ummm... I’m a vegetarian who flirts with being vegan now and then – just love my bok choi!!!

Robyn Grady

Soraya: I don't look much like a country girl, but in the weekends (and every moment we have spare after work hours) my husband and I are in the garden, digging and growing our own vegetables, or out with our horses. Most of my life outdoors is spent in gumboots/wellies, with dirt beneath my finger nails :) We live on a small farm in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Robyn: That 24 isn't my real age :flutters lashes:

Don’t they all sound awesome? We’re so excited they’ve joined us! And to pay the excitement forward, we’re giving away *three* prize packs, because three is our favourite number today. ;)

To go into the draw for one of the packs, simply leave a comment. And if you feel like it, maybe answer the last question we asked all the new cats – what’s something we may not know about you? Then pass the catnip punch and let your fur down. =)

Rachel Bailey is a lover of books, chocolate, dogs, and ice cream. Luckily, she has four dogs, an ice cream maker, a steady supply of chocolate, and bookshelves overflowing with books, so she’s covered on all fronts. Her books have hit the USA Today bestseller list, are published in over twenty-six countries and have been translated into sixteen languages.

64 comments:

Don't tell me I'm the first to this party - that's unprecedented!!! Well I'll do what I always do which is head to the kitchen and start taking the gladwrap off the nibblies....

Welcome Natalie, Soraya and Robbie - so very exciting to have three new cats on the block. I can't enter the draw obviously but...something you might not know about me...hmmm...

I love public speaking. Not to say I don't get nervous and my heart doesn't swell up to the size of a football the moment before I'm due to begin, but I love to engage people and teach them about something I'm passionate about. And I love the rush. No group too big or too small....

Welcome to the new LoveCats. It's always nice to get to know a little bit about the authors behind the books. Since none of you know me it's not hard for me to tell something about my self that you don't know. Let's see, I'm afraid of the water so I can't swim. This is entirely due to an unfortunate almost drowning accident when I was young, I've never been able to get past it. Well, enough about me. On with the party.

I'm a bit of a lurker on this site - introduced to it by my old (as in ex, not as in age) schoolmate (classmate, really), Emily May. I'm a secret scribbler, still honing my craft, and hoping to join your ranks one day. In the meantime, I teach English in Italy. Like Nikki above, I really enjoy public speaking, and was in Toastmasters for a few years in New Zealand. A secret...? I enjoy searching through stock images in search of my next hero and heroine :-) Rob Lang's galleries are a favourite source of inspiration.

Hi, Natalie, Soraya and Robyn. Its nice to read about you all. Still smiling at all your answers. About me...well it might not look that way, but I'm painfully shy, that is face to face. There, my secrets out!

Something youdon't know about me... I met my husband by picking him up on the side of the road at 4am when I was a teenager. I feel ill at the thought of one of my daughters doing something like that but i knew he was harmless when all he could offer to drink back at his place (yep i drove him home) was red cordial. I do remember refusing in case it was spiked - i had a tiny bit of brain. Tiny...

Yay and welcome to our three super-lovely, super-sleek new LoveCats!!! Natalie, Soraya and Robbie, it's wonderful to have you as part of the pride (or is that litter, herd, gaggle )!

Pauses to grab a glass of bubbly catnip punch and a nibble (or ten).

Something you don't know about me... my very first job was as a waitress in a coffee job and my very favourite thing was making iced chocolates. Have set myself up in a corner here under a festive red and white striped awning... Anyone for an iced chocolate?

Hey, the party's in full swing! Emily, I'll take one of those catnip punches you're passing around. And thanks for getting the nibblies sorted, Nikki!

Something people may not know about me? I can't tell my left from my right, and I can't tell the time at a glance - I have to work both of them out if I need to know. The gorgeous Kiki Lon tells me it's because I'm ambidextrous, but my family have no end of enjoyment in teasing me about it.

Linda - water can be a scary thing. I grew up near the coast and most coastal kids in Australia can swim, but we also know it's dangerous. Hugs on the incident when you were younger. Here, have some catnip punch. :)

Jo - I have that same habit! Thanks for the tip of the gallery - I'll go check them out now.

Nas - you're painfully shy? But you're so good with words online, so chatty! Ah, the power of the internet. :)

Anna - another public speaking fan? Wow, that's a few of you now. Good to know. ;)

Welcome Robbie, Natalie and Soraya. Looking forward to seeing your book, too, Soraya.Something you don't know..... I love black Scottish Terriers and go nuts when I spot one in real life - which is hardly ever. I just love them.

Great to see the party's in full swing already. Huge welcomes to our new cats! Public speaking? Yikes! Which is silly because I'm a teacher :). Jo, I also teach ESOL but in NZ - the next best thing to travelling is having lots of wonderful "foreigners" come to me.

One new thing - by the time I was 30, I'd had over 30 different jobs. Michelle, can I have an iced coffee?

C'mon LoveCats, 'fess up [hands Rachel an iced chocolate and Zana an iced coffee. Seriously, guys, these are good!] What did you do when you held your very first book in your hands? Me, I hugged it to my chest and then raced outside to show all the neighbours. It spent the following week sitting in its very own armchair where I could admire it :-)

Hey what a great party! Lovely to see two of my friends join the Lovecats (Hi Robbie, Hi Natalie) and a warm Hi to a new friend. Nice to meet you, Soraya! (Gorgeous name!!) Can't wait to read your books, too.

Something you don't know about me...Well I pretty much bared my soul on the RWAus Blog earlier this year. I guess I need to repeat one of those - I'm also quasi-ambidextrous. I write with my right hand but pretty much alternate hands for almost everything else! Hugs to all Serena

Zana - over 30 jobs by the time you were 30? There are some stories in that, I'm sure... ;)

Michelle - interesting question! I think one of the first things I did with my first box of books was to sign some with special inscriptions for my family and critique partners. Think I took one over to my mother the same day. And gave one to dh straight away too. =)

Oh golly I think I'm really late! So sorry esp because it's such a thrill to be joining the Cats!!!! Really awesome to be here :) Less awesome to be facing up to a hellish deadline ;)Thanks so much for the welcome everyone - it's going to be fun!

Serena - I loved it when you bared your soul on the RWA blog! Such a beautiful soul you have. :) Cool about mixing up the hands - useful when one hand is sore or tired.

Hi Louisa! So glad Tracey told you about us. My goodness you sound interesting! A retired opera singer who can play the clarinet and bassoon and once kept tarantulas as pets? And I bet each of those four cats have their own story to tell. =)

Wow, more Cats! Hope you enjoy yourselves Robyn, Natalie and Soraya. And sorry I'm late to the party. Here are some more nibblies - didn't want to come late and empty handed! You guys have the best parties :-)

OMG, Louisa, tarantulas? Did you ever get bitten? Perhaps we could feed some of Jo's ghastly toads to them ;-)

*Handing around more iced chocs, now liberally sprinkled with catnip and a hint of Baileys*

Catherine, a girl guide at 32! That must mean you have your Queens Guide award -- big, super-duper deal! Have an iced choc and we'll toast you. (A day for secrets... I was the very first Patrol Leader in my little country town's inaugural Guide troop). *retires now to the corner to sing camp songs*

Jo - frog fear? I love frogs! I had a calendar once with photos of the blue ones and red ones and all the different types. Gorgeous! But fears are what they are. I hope you don't have to cross paths with many of the ones you don't like. :)

Catherine - a Girl Guide from 7 - 32? I guess that means you liked it! Oooh, and it looks like Michelle has some specialist knowledge there too. *sits back and listens to the camp songs*

OohLaLa! What a party! Congrats Natalie, Robyn and Soraya on joining a fun blog!

My first catagories were written by Betty Neels, Penny Jordan, Anne Mather, Catherine Spencer, Margaret Way, Charlotte Lamb, Janet Dailey and Diana Hamilton.My first romance book was Forgiving by LaVyrle Spencer.That was back in 1986!

Your prize packages all sound fabulous! I'm always looking for new authors to try. Thanks for the chance to win!

Things you don't know about me: I love music but I can't sing, play the guitar or the piano. I believe I'm tone deaf. I love to watch people dance. I'm too self conscious to try. I love to swim but I won't go in the ocean. I fear the strong undertow and sharks! I hide my romance books all over the house. Laurie G

First time to this site also and wonderful to see so many from downunder.

I'm a Kiwi who has just chalked up two years living in the US. I've spent the last year rediscovering my love of reading as hubby gave me an e-reader for my last birthday, (had to leave all my books behind when I moved).

I have to confess.....I am a stationery-aholic!!!! I hoard exercise books, pads, notebooks etc. Running my hand over a smooth, empty, lined page has me drooling and itching to write on it. I work for a large office product chain and every day feels like a personal shopping day to me. Talk about a sad individual.....

Great fun blog - girls - a great way to start off the Christmas month. Something you don't know about me - not sure I have any secrets as I've such a big mouth but here goes - I can't cook even when following a recipe. Nothing ever works out right. If you come to dinner at my house it's often bought. That's why I loved living in England - M&S pre-packaged food.

wow, what a lot of great comments to read through! @Zana, where do you teach? I started out in NZ (Cert. TESOL through Seafield in New Brighton, then taught in Christchurch), but I got the travel bug from my students, and had to fly, fly away! @Kim, I share your love of stationery! Nothing beats an empty notebook or a fresh new pen for a thrill ;-) great party, this one!

Laurie - wow, some big names there in your first categories! And I've been meaning to try LaVryle Spencer for a while now - people keep recommending her to me. Maybe I'll put one of hers on my Christmas list...

I love music too, and also can't sing or play an instrument properly. Or dance very well. Though it's fun to try - I play around on the piano when no one's home. ;)

You hide your romance books all over the house? You need a romance bookshelf! Maybe a nice one beside your bed so they're in easy reach. =)

Kim - I think most writers are stationery-aholics! I so relate to running your hand over a smooth, unused notebook. *sigh* How do you work at a stationery supplies store and not want to bring one of everything home each day?

Oooh, you're new to e-readers? I've been flirting with the idea of one for ages. Urged on by wanting to read Anna Hackett's books in particular...

Helen - or should I address you as Downunder's Newest Harlequin Author? Or maybe Downunder's Newest Special Edition Author? =) HUGE congrats, Helen!!

Now, you were riding your horse down the street in a devil's costume... I think there's some of that story missing?? More information, please! (Here, have some of Michelle Douglas's iced chocolates to help you remember.)

Jo - I love that you caught the travel bug from your students and now you're in Italy. *dreamy sigh*

Amanda - thanks for letting me know you liked At The Billionaire's Beck And Call! Ryder is one of my two favourite heroes so far - the other is his half-brother, Seth Kentrell who's the hero of my February 2011 book. =)

And you're in for a real treat with Robbie's Amnesiac Ex, Unforgettable Vows - I've read it already :) and the situation those characters find themselves in is *so* bittersweet.

Bargain shopper, hey? I suppose you know about the free Lovecat books atm? Nikki Logan's Their Newborn Gift is a free download book at http://www.everyonesreading.com/ along with some other great titles!

Wow! What fun and interesting things we don't know about people! - tarantulas as pets - EEK!- a 24 pound cat? Hard to resist him if he decided he wanted to sit on your lap! ;)- stationery lovers? Me, too!- bargain shopping? One of my fav things!- and research! Sadly, I like to spend way too much time on that, too! Well done on tracking down that book title, Anita!

Waving to Helen! Congratulations! And you do have to tell us more about this ride in the red costume! I'm imagining some sort of street parade for a festival perhaps??

Helen - you're the Helen I met at the RWA Awards Dinner in Coogee this year, aren't you? We were at the same table, but opposite sides, so I didn't get to speak much to you? If so, hi again! If not, nice to meet you. :)

Clare, pull up a couch and have a glass of catnip punch. You can sing Three Blind Mice in Latin? I bet if you sang it to Emily, she'd even understand - her secret was that she loved Latin at school. Actually, now I'm intrigued... don't suppose you can video yourself singing it for us? ;)

Thanks Rachel. I enjoyed the catnip punch, and the creme de la creme cocktail very much. Nice to catch up with you again (*brushing cat fur off clothes*). I saw Emily's comment, that's what reminded me about the Latin thing - except that I HATED Latin lessons. Wasn't too impressed with the teacher either. She was renown for her (not nice) catty comments! Hope you enjoy the chocolate I've left for your pawty. You girls deserve it - I think you're all the cat's whiskers!!! :-)

Thanks for the congrat's again Rachel & Sharon. Ah, the red Devil's costume - well it was to advertise a flower shop on Valentines Day (I was a florist is a former life) The horse I threw in because it saved me from walking. I enjoyed Michelle's iced choc, thanks :)

Amanda, yes, chocolate is always a winner with me too. I had to do lots of taste testing for that book. ;) Seth's story has pianos and jazz music - another favourite thing of mine. And a lighthouse. =)

Since you have Nikki's free read already (2 copies!), do you know about Mel Teshco's free read at Ellora's Cave? If you like very hot stories: http://www.jasminejade.com/pm-8798-587-discovering-sofia.aspx

Helen, it *was* you! I'd love to come to the Australian Romance Readers' Convention in March in Bondi - sounds like a blast. Not sure I can manage it this year. =( But we cats are talking amongst ourselves about it and it looks like some cats will definitely be there. And maybe something else from us too!

I am so excited to come across this site thanks to Natalie's post on Facebook. I am always looking for fun new blogs to add to my reader. Plus, those are some great prize packs!! Something you don't know about me - I read category romance novels to escape from my boring job as a government attorney!

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